Shutdown sparks flight chaos as TSA lines spill into parking lots with 3-hour waits or longer

Many airports have been grappling with massive security lines asspring break travelkicked off over the weekend amid a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) funding lapse.

Houston ‌Hobby Airport inHouston, Texas,had lines lasting an average of 3.5 hours at one point Sunday — while Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport in Louisiana told passengers to arrive at least three hours before their flights, Reuters reported.

�severe fallout” from the “Democrat shutdown” of DHS.

Read More → LIORA REZ: Antisemitic tropes masquerade as criticism of Israel

FLIGHT CHAOS GRIPS US AIRPORTS AS SOME AIRLINES ADVISE BOOKING ‘BACKUP TICKET’: SEE THE LIST

“Today, travelers are facing TSA lines of up to nearly 3 hours long at some major airports, causing missed flights and massive delays during peak travel,” said Bis.

“These political stunts force patriotic TSA officers, who protect our skies from serious threats, towork without pay,” she said. 

Houston ‌Hobby Airport (pictured) in Houston, Texas had lines reach an average of 3.5 hours at one point on Sunday.(Mark Felix/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Read More → Inside Microsoft’s AI content verification plan

“These frontline heroes received only partial paychecks earlier this month and now face their first full missed paycheck, leading to financial hardship, absences and crippling staffing shortages.”

Read More → Scottish golfer Robert MacIntyre flashes lewd gesture at Masters

�as early as possible” to avoid missing their flights. 

Passengers were seen in a security line in Houston that stretched from the security checkpoint into the baggage claim area and a parking garage.(Mark Felix/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

A trade association representingmajor U.S.airlinessaid flights were delayed and passengers missed flights due to long security lines, according to Reuters.

“Congress and the administration must ​act with urgency to ⁠reach a deal that reopens DHS and ends this shutdown.America’s transportation security workforce is too important to be used as political leverage,” said Airlines for America CEO Chris Sununu in a statement.

�as early as possible” to avoid missing their flights. (Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle via Getty Images)

With theWorld Cupless than 100 days away, staffing shortages could become a pressure point at airport checkpoints.

Read More → Greater weight loss promised by higher-dose Wegovy shot, now approved by FDA

onelink.me/xLDS?pid=AppArticleLink&af_web_dp=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.

Training a new TSA officer typically takes about four to six months.

Boston-based traveler Eliana Patterson told Reuters that the security lines at theNew Orleans airportwrapped throughout the terminal, reaching out through an exit into a nearby parking lot.

TEST YOURSELF WITH OUR LATEST LIFESTYLE QUIZ

“My flight’s been delayed, but if it ​hadn’t been I’d be a little worried,” she said. 

Reuters contributed reporting. 

Ashley J.